Samsung has moved prices in two directions this week. Effective May 1st, the company has hiked prices by Rs 1,000 per variant (from current retail prices) across several budget and mid-range Galaxy phones. At the same time, discounts of up to Rs 9,000 are now live on its latest flagship and upper mid-range lineup with the offers reportedly running only until May 27th.
The hikes cover older models in the M and F series. The discounts cover the Galaxy S26 series, Galaxy A37, and Galaxy A57, which are all recent launches. The two moves happening simultaneously, and in opposite directions across the portfolio, is worth paying attention to.
Samsung Galaxy M, F series prices go up
Every variant of the affected models has gone up by Rs 1,000 from their current selling prices (which were anyway higher than launch prices. When you look at where some of these phones started, the cumulative increase is significant.
| Model | Launch price (base variant) | New price | Total increase |
| Galaxy M36 5G | Rs 16,499 | Rs 21,999 | Rs 5,500 |
| Galaxy F36 5G | Rs 16,499 | Rs 21,999 | Rs 5,500 |
| Galaxy M17 5G | Rs 12,499 | Rs 16,999 | Rs 4,500 |
| Galaxy M17e | Rs 13,999 | Rs 15,499 | Rs 1,500 |
| Galaxy F70e 5G | Rs 13,999 | Rs 15,499 | Rs 1,500 |
| Galaxy M06 5G | Rs 11,499 | Rs 12,499 | Rs 1,000 |
| Galaxy F06 5G | Rs 9,499 | Rs 12,499 | Rs 3,000 |
The M36 and F36 tell the most striking story. Both launched at Rs 16,499 (including a Rs 1,000 bank discount) and they now start at Rs 21,999, which is a Rs 5,500 or 33 percent jump without any hardware changes.
The M06 and F06 crossing Rs 12,000 to Rs 13,000 continues a trend building across every brand. Budget 5G phones that used to anchor under Rs 10,000 are now comfortably past that threshold, driven by the same memory and chipset cost pressures that have pushed Realme and OnePlus to make similar moves this week.
Galaxy S26 series, A series prices come down
Now, the good news. Tipster Abhishek Yadav has shared a list of the discounts on the Samsung Galaxy S26 series and Galaxy A37 and A57, claiming the offers are limited time and will only run until May 27th. We have verified the cuts on Samsung’s website, Amazon, Croma, and other retailers. These are all Samsung’s latest launches.
| Model | Discount | Price after discount |
| Galaxy S26 12/256GB | Rs 8,000 | Rs 79,999 |
| Galaxy S26 12/512GB | Rs 8,000 | Rs 99,999 |
| Galaxy S26 Ultra 12/256GB | Rs 9,000 | Rs 1,30,999 |
| Galaxy S26 Ultra 12/512GB | Rs 9,000 | Rs 1,50,999 |
| Galaxy S26 Ultra 16/1TB | Rs 9,000 | Rs 1,80,999 (currently out of stock) |
| Galaxy A37 8/128GB | Rs 5,000 | Rs 36,999 |
| Galaxy A37 8/256GB | Rs 5,000 | Rs 42,499 |
| Galaxy A37 12/256GB | Rs 5,000 | Rs 47,999 |
| Galaxy A57 8/256GB | Rs 7,000 | Rs 49,999 |
| Galaxy A57 12/256GB | Rs 7,000 | Rs 55,499 |
The Galaxy S26 at Rs 79,999 is a decent price point by current standards for a current-generation flagship. The S26 Ultra at Rs 1,30,999 brings it closer to territory where the asking price starts to feel more compelling. Importantly, these are not legacy models being cleared. They are Samsung’s most recent flagship releases, which makes the discount more consequential than a typical end-of-cycle sale.
Every major brand right now is raising prices and offering nothing in return. Samsung is doing the same on its older budget stock, which was going to happen regardless of anything else. But running simultaneous discounts on its newest and most visible products is a different move. Whether planned this way or not, it puts Samsung in a better light than everyone else this week. Buyers who had been sitting on the fence about a flagship upgrade now have a concrete, time-limited reason to act. And buyers who are frustrated by industry-wide budget price hikes might look at the S26 discount and feel like Samsung is at least giving something back.
If a Galaxy S26 or S26 Ultra has been on your radar, the window until May 27th is the most compelling buying opportunity since launch. Rs 8,000 to Rs 9,000 off phones that arrived only a few months ago is not a discount you should expect to see again quickly, especially with the broader pricing environment moving upward across the industry. On the budget side, the M36, F36, and M17 are priced where they are and unlikely to come back down. If you need one of those phones, factor the new price into your decision rather than anchoring to what they launched at.
Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra Images
